Silent carrier warning as health ministry tracks 1,000 Portlanders

PORT ANTONIO, Portland:

Health authorities in Portland are concerned about the danger of asymptomatic coronavirus carriers as the Government tracks 1,000 residents of the parish who may have come directly or indirectly in contact with COVID-19-positive persons.

The disclosure was made by chief public health inspector in charge of the parish, Lorenzo Hume. The public-health expert was addressing the monthly sitting of the Portland Municipal Corporation last Thursday via the Internet.

Five persons have tested positive in Portland, which has three communities on the health ministry’s radar: Spring Bank, Hector’s River, and Breastworks. The global pandemic has already claimed the lives of four Jamaicans locally and accounted for more than 70 cases.

“We have gone now, in terms of a community visit interface or got information through different avenues, of more than a thousand people that we would have tried to get information on them and sift through that to see who are the persons of interest,” Hume told the meeting.

The chief public health inspector has expressed concern about commuters who continue to ignore social-distancing stipulations of staying at least three feet apart.

GATHERING HOTSPOTS

Hume’s statement comes against the background of troubling scenes in the parish capital, Port Antonio, where large gatherings have been noticed, particularly in the corridor featuring National Commercial Bank, the Bank of Nova Scotia, the post office, and some supermarkets.

“The hotspots are basically in the town. We are extremely worried because among our group, we have an asymptomatic carrier among our positive cases, and in that respect, if that person had infected other persons, they are also asymptomatic, and we are in for problem,” Hume further said.

Hume disclosed that a 60-year-old woman who was the first positive case in Portland has been discharged from hospital and released to home quarantine for an extended period. The health department will be conducting daily checks on her progress, the inspector said.

The other four cases are still under investigation, Hume said. One person is reportedly in isolation, another in hospital quarantine, and 15 others self-quarantined at home.

Hume also commended local health workers who have been on the front line treating patients in affected communities.